


Little Miss Pendragon

by marvelxpendragon



Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Arthur Knows About Merlin's Magic (Merlin), Domestic Fluff, Fluff and Humor, Idiots in Love, Jealous Arthur Pendragon (Merlin), M/M, Soft Arthur Pendragon (Merlin)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-02
Updated: 2021-03-02
Packaged: 2021-03-10 17:15:00
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,902
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28440741
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/marvelxpendragon/pseuds/marvelxpendragon
Summary: Among echoes of laughter and baby noises, Merlin and Arthur get to experience one of the magical moments of being parents together when their daughter utters her first word.
Relationships: Merlin/Arthur Pendragon (Merlin)
Comments: 10
Kudos: 160





	Little Miss Pendragon

“Merlin!” Merlin let down what he was doing and rushed to the bedroom where Arthur was sitting on the bed with little Theodora in his lap. 

“You will _not_ believe what just happened.” Arthur beamed in amusement as she repeatedly made attempts to leap in joy in Arthur’s grasp. 

“Did she say something?” Merlin grinned, immediately crouching down to his knees beside them instead of just sitting on the bed. 

“D— da—.” the little girl uttered, her two front teeth that were barely there, showing from how wide she was smiling. 

“Dada?” Merlin nodded with an ear-from-ear grin, helping her finish the word.

“Wait for it.” Arthur said, hidden amusement evident in his voice.

“D—dalla head!” she squeaked, giggling in victory afterwards. 

Merlin’s face dropped to a blank expression as he turned to look at Arthur. “I’ve been trying to get her to say the easiest word in children's history and the first thing she says is an attempt of ‘dollop head’?!” 

“Dallahead.” she cheered again, and Merlin buried his face in his hands. 

“Oh god she keeps repeating it.” he mumbled into his hands. He had come up with that name to get back at Arthur whenever he got on his nerves, and somehow that name stuck around and ended up being a definition of Merlin whenever Arthur pleased to call him anything other than his actual name. Which was _a lot_. 

“She has just proved herself to be a little miss Pendragon.” Arthur proudly said with a smile on his face. He nuzzled his face then into her tummy, earning loud squeals and laughs from her as her hands tugged at his disheveled blond hair. 

Of course he would be proud. For he was the one repeatedly calling him by that in her presence. 

“Could’ve been dada.” Merlin hopelessly said. “But why would I expect that from you, Theodora _Pendragon_?” he gently poked her nose, eventually smiling at how happy she was. 

Her little arms reached up to Merlin after he caught her attention, melting his heart. “Come here.” he took her from Arthur, his hands covering all of her small body with just her legs dangling in the air, kicking with excitement. Her wide blue eyes glimmered with glee as she gawked at him, her hands coming up to his face, tapping different parts of it. 

Merlin kissed her hands and she giggled at the action, causing him to do it again. He moved her to his arm to carry her properly and took one of her hands, spreading her small palm against his lips and let them linger there after he kissed it. 

“Well, she has been getting a lot of love from you, don’t you think?” Arthur rose from the bed, making a silly face at her then glancing at him in humour. 

“Arthur Pendragon, are you jealous of your own daughter?” Merlin teased, raising an eyebrow.

“Who said that?” he innocently retorted.

“I certainly didn’t.” Merlin shrugged, carrying on with whatever Arthur was hinting at. 

“Shut up, Merlin.” he rolled his eyes, stifling a smile that ended up shaping his pink lips anyway. “Alright, maybe a little.” he said as he snuck an arm around Merlin’s waist and rested his other hand on Theodora’s back. 

“You know I love you both more than anything in the whole world.” Arthur softly said, bringing them closer to his body and resting his head on Merlin’s shoulder.

“I know.” Merlin smiled, staring at the little girl in his arms. 

Merlin’s mind went back to the day they decided to adopt her and a soft smile instantly found its way to his lips. He remembered the first time he laid eyes on her and how he immediately knew that she was the one. It was strange, Merlin thought. He felt a strange connection to her, as if she was somehow calling for him.

Even though she doesn’t carry their genes, Merlin could see the both of them in her. Her pale skin matched his. Her hair was dark but not as dark as his. She had ocean blue eyes that reminded him of Arthur every time they stared at him.

Theodora has been with them since she was a little three-month-old baby, and now she was almost one year old. He remembers how certain Arthur was when he admitted that he would love to have a child with him, and Merlin didn’t dare refuse. It warmed his heart that they were _this far_ in their relationship. 

He slowly swayed them sideways, quietly humming to himself. He was glad that Arthur complied, swiftly moving with him. Theodora has stopped her uncontrollable giggles and was now peeking at Merlin with wide curious blue eyes. 

“Merlin, your voice is terrible.” Arthur noted.

“Shh.” he shushed him and continued humming as he swayed the girl who was starting to smile again. “She likes it.” Merlin smiled in triumph.

“She has terrible taste.” Arthur joked. 

“Like me.” Merlin teased. “If I actually had good taste, I wouldn’t have been stuck here with you in the first place.” 

“Hey!” Arthur exclaimed, turning to rest his chin on his shoulder so he could see Merlin’s face. 

Merlin giggled at Arthur’s response. He loved getting that ‘excuse me, my ego is hurt’ reaction from him whenever he could, and now seemed like a perfect chance.

“I’m joking.” he shot Arthur a knowing smile. “You’re the best thing that ever happened to me.” he said, watching his expression soften at his words.

Arthur looked up at him through his eyelashes and slowly raised his head, only to lean closer to Merlin. Right before his lips could reach him, Theodora let out a loud babble, drawing their attention towards her. Her hand that wasn’t clutching Merlin’s shirt reached Arthur's and attempted to pull him closer to her but she lost her grip on the fabric too quickly, causing Arthur to briefly laugh.

“You want a kiss, too?” Arthur grinned, raising his eyebrows at her.

Merlin shook his head with a sniggle, “You little devil.” he nudged his nose with hers, receiving a loud squeal as her hands went up to grab his ears in them. He turned then to showering her face in kisses, which was his favourite thing to do. 

Theodora’s giggles echoed in the room and Arthur was too amused at the situation to try and take her in his arms instead. He finally pulled away, slightly catching his breath from having been laughing too much.

“My turn.” Arthur said, and gave Merlin no time to respond before he tenderly pecked his lips.

The baby let out a soft yawn (that made Merlin’s heart swell every time she did it). “Looks like someone’s sleepy.”

“Yeah, it’s about time.” Arthur replied.

“Alright then.” Merlin raised adjusted her in his arms and placed his other hand on her back. “Time to put you to your sleep, little Dora.” that was the last thing he said before he started slowly rocking her. 

Not too long after that, he felt her small figure completely relax in his grip, and her head grew still against his chest. 

Merlin looked at Arthur who was pulling his pinky finger out of her curled fist as quietly as possible. “Asleep already?” he mouthed the words to him, not wanting to risk making any sounds. 

Arthur nodded in response, sending a wave of relief into Merlin’s heart. Theodora wasn’t much of a crier. She was easily put to sleep when it was Merlin’s turn to tuck her in. It usually took Arthur longer to get her to fall asleep, but he has been getting better at it now that she is getting older.

He went over to her bed that was situated next to theirs and carefully let her down, hoping she doesn’t wake up. However, his wish did not come true. Shortly after she was put in bed, a grimace formed on her face followed by a series of sobs. 

“No, no.” Merlin cooed. 

“Here, let me.” Arthur stepped in and picked her up. She was fully crying by now, and Merlin couldn’t fathom why she was so upset. This was her bedtime anyway.

“She’s getting too used to falling asleep in your arms, that’s why.” he said as he continuously patted her back, trying to get her to stop crying. 

Merlin awkwardly rubbed the back of his neck, not knowing whether to be happy or not. On one hand, it left him flattered. On the other hand, she would cry every time she sensed that she was no longer in his embrace. And they couldn’t live with that.

“Come on.” Arthur sighed as he cradled her in a sleeping position. “I think it’s one of those times where you use the magic card, Merlin.” he called over Theodora’s loud weeping.

He shook his head at how Arthur addressed the situations where he had to use his magic in order to calm her down or whenever she was feeling grumpier than usual. Merlin loved using his magic to make her happy, and over the time they spent together, he came to learn what her favourite magic trick was.

Merlin cupped his hands over his lips and whispered the spell. When his hands opened, three blue butterflies came flying out of them and hovered over Theodora’s head. It took her a few seconds to notice that something was above her head, distracting her from crying furthermore. Merlin watched as her eyes widened in wonder while she watched the delicate creatures flutter around her. 

He walked closer to them, and Arthur wrapped his other arm around him (it was a matter of habit). Whenever one of them was carrying Theodora, the other would just hold them closer, as if they were a safe haven for each other. A faint smile shaped Merlin’s lips as both of them watched her little arms raise up in an attempt to catch the butterflies with adorable baby sounds leaving her lips. 

Merlin directed one of the butterflies to land on her nose for a split second and laughed afterwards when she sneezed. Silence filled the room for short moments before Arthur laughed along with Merlin. Theodora giggled as well when she saw her parents laughing, which brought warmth to his heart.

“Look at you, you little mess.” Arthur tittered as he wiped her nose with the little neck kerchief around her neck.

Her babbles died down after that, and her arms were no longer in the air trying to catch butterflies. Instead, one of her hands was rubbing at her eyes that returned to their droopy state from earlier. Merlin made the little creatures vanish and enchanted bright blue sparkles that glowed like stars. The light enchantment was timed, every time her eyes heavily blinked, more sparkles would pop until there were no ones left. 

She marvelled at the sight, a low sigh escaping her throat. The scene was breathtaking; how the cluster of stars reflected in the blue of her eyes until she finally fell asleep. 

Merlin and Arthur shared a look with smiles drawn on their lips. 

He then glanced down at her angelic features as she slept, taking in the serenity of the situation. The happiness and peace he felt as the three of them stood there was incomparable. With the love of his life and a part of both of them in his arms, he felt _whole._

**Author's Note:**

> Hope you loved reading this! :) your feedback would be appreciated <3


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